The Art of Leading with Awe: Practical Rhythms for Cultivating Gospel Wonder Every Sunday

This is the fourth article in this series. We recommend reading the first three articles before this one.

Four theologically rooted reflections from Psalm 96 to help you lead Sundays with deeper affection, greater awe, and a vision that stretches beyond the stage.

Worship leaders, let's talk about something that can slowly drain the life out of your calling without you even realizing it. Leading worship week after week can become exhausting, even for seasoned leaders. The routine of planning, rehearsing, and leading can slowly drain the wonder and awe that initially fueled your passion.

I've been there. You probably have too. That moment when you realize you're going through the motions – hitting all the right notes, making smooth transitions, leading with technical excellence – but your heart feels dry. You're leading worship on your own strength instead of seeking the Lord in the secret place.

Psalm 96 invites us to "ascribe to the Lord glory and strength" (v.7) – a posture of awe that worship leaders must cultivate intentionally. But here's what we need to understand: this isn't just about having good devotional habits. This is about encountering the God who is so overwhelmingly glorious that when we truly see Him, we can't help but lead from a place of wonder.

The Problem with Leading from Routine

Let's get honest about what happens when we lead worship from routine instead of revelation. We start measuring our success by how smoothly things went rather than whether people encountered God. We become more concerned about our setlist flow than about God's glory being revealed. We begin to think that our musical ability, our planning, and our team dynamics are what make worship happen.

This is dangerous territory. When we lead from our own strength, we subtly communicate to our congregations that worship is about human performance rather than divine encounter. We turn what should be a supernatural experience into a well-executed program.

The scary part? You can do this for months, even years, and people might not notice. You can hit every cue, nail every harmony, and create moments that feel spiritual – all while your own heart grows increasingly distant from the God you're supposed to be pointing people toward.

Understanding the God Who Demands Awe

Here's what Psalm 96 won't let us forget: we're not just leading people in singing songs. We're helping them become aware of the presence of the holy God of the universe. Verse 9 says to "worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth."

That word "tremble" isn't about being terrified – it's about worshipful awe. Think about it this way: In the Old Testament, God was so holy that only one High Priest could enter His presence once a year to offer sacrifices for the people's sins. God's holiness was so overwhelming that being in His full presence in our sinful state would kill us on the spot.

But here's the incredible thing – when Jesus died on that cross, the temple veil was ripped from top to bottom, giving us full access to God through His Son. We now have Jesus as our High Priest who made the way for us to enter God's presence. But here's what we can't forget: God hasn't become less holy. He's still the same infinitely, overwhelmingly holy God.

C.S. Lewis helps us understand this in his description of Aslan in Narnia. When little Lucy asks if Aslan is safe, Mr. Beaver responds: "Safe? Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you."

God isn't "safe" in the sense that He can't be controlled, manipulated, or put in a box. He makes demands that might be uncomfortable, costly, or scary. He disrupts our comfortable lives. His presence is overwhelming and awesome. But He's good – He always acts in love, always does what's right, can always be trusted, and wants what's best for us.

When We Lose Our Awe

The deeper our understanding of God's holiness and goodness, the richer our worship becomes. But when we lose that sense of awe – when we start seeing God as predictable, manageable, or ordinary – our worship becomes anemic.

I've watched this happen to worship leaders who've been in ministry for years. They can still lead musically, they know all the right transitions, they can shepherd a room effectively. But somewhere along the way, they stopped being amazed by the God they're leading people to worship.

This shows up in subtle ways. You stop spending time in God's presence outside of service prep. Your personal worship becomes non-existent because you're "too busy" with ministry. You start depending more on your musical skills than on the Holy Spirit's power. You begin to think that your job is to create an atmosphere rather than to point people to the awesome God who inhabits our praise.

Here's what I've learned: you can't lead people into an encounter with God's glory if you haven't encountered it yourself recently. You can't point others to His holiness if you haven't been undone by it in your own life.

The Secret Place: Where Awe Is Cultivated

Awe isn't something that just happens because you have the right songs or a talented band. It's formed through repeated encounters with the greatness and mercy of God in the secret place – that private space where it's just you and Him.

This is where the difference is made. When ministry busyness crowds out time with God, our hearts grow dull. We start operating from yesterday's revelation instead of today's encounter. We begin to lead from memory rather than from fresh experience of His goodness.

The secret place is where you remember who God actually is. It's where you're reminded that the same God who parted the Red Sea, who shut the lions' mouths, who raised Jesus from the dead is the God you're leading people to worship on Sunday. It's where your theological knowledge transforms into heart-level wonder.

In the secret place, you don't have to perform. You don't have to worry about smooth transitions or perfect pitch. You can just be in awe of the One who created the heavens and the earth, who knows every star by name, yet who calls you His beloved child.

Cultivating Wonder Through God's Word

One of the most powerful ways to cultivate awe is through immersing yourself in Scripture, especially texts that highlight God's attributes. When you read Isaiah 6 and see the seraphim covering their faces and crying "Holy, holy, holy," you're reminded of God's overwhelming holiness. When you read Psalm 139 and realize that God knows every thought before you think it, you're struck by His omniscience.

But here's the key: don't just read about God's attributes – let them affect you. When you read that God is omnipotent, stop and consider what that means. There is no limit to His power. When you read that He's omnipresent, pause and realize that right now, in this moment, you're in the presence of the Creator of the universe.

This isn't just theological study – this is heart preparation for worship leadership. The more you understand who God actually is, the more your worship will match the reality of His glory.

The Rhythm of Awe

Here's what happens when you cultivate awe in the secret place: you start leading from overflow rather than from empty. Your worship becomes authentic because it's flowing from a heart that has recently encountered God's goodness.

Cultivating awe isn't a one-time event – it's a rhythm. Just like your physical body needs regular nourishment, your spiritual life needs regular encounters with God's glory. This means being intentional about rest, about Sabbath, about stepping away from ministry tasks to simply be with God.

It means starting your week not with setlist planning but with seeking God's face. It means asking not just "What songs should we sing?" but "Who is God, and how can our worship reflect His glory?"

Practical Rhythms That Actually Work

Here are some rhythms that have helped me guard against leading from routine and cultivate ongoing awe:

Protect your personal worship time. Before you prep for Sunday, spend time worshiping God with no agenda other than enjoying Him. No setlist planning, no service prep – just you and God.

Read Scripture to encounter God, not just to find sermon connections. Ask yourself as you read: "What does this passage reveal about God's character?" Let yourself be amazed by what you discover.

Practice Sabbath ruthlessly. Take a full day where you're not thinking about ministry, not planning services, not checking church emails. Rest in God's goodness and let your soul be refreshed.

Start rehearsals by focusing on God's glory, not your checklist. Before you run through songs, spend a few minutes as a team remembering who you're leading people to worship. Let that reality shape how you approach your time together.

The goal isn't to add more to your already busy schedule. The goal is to reorient your life around encountering the God whose glory you're called to declare. Because when you do, everything else flows from that reality – and your congregation will sense the difference.

Ready to cultivate this kind of awe-filled worship leadership? I'd love to help you develop rhythms that keep your heart burning with wonder for the God we serve.